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While land-use change threatens insectivorous bats, there is a lack in conservation measures targeting bats in temperate agro-ecosystems. Further, there is no consensus on shared benefits of existing conservation measures either. To unravel the causal factors behind the failure and success of conservation measures, we studied whether sown wildflower fields create sufficient ecological contrast and adequate foraging habitats for insectivorous bats and if potential benefits depend on landscape context. From June to September 2020, we simultaneously monitored insects and bats on paired wildflower and crop fields in landscapes with increasing complexity, here shares of semi-natural habitats such as hedgerows. We compared insect and specifically moth abundance as well as overall bat and foraging activity between wildflower and crop fields and studied effects of prey abundance on bat activity. During summer, insect and moth abundances were two- to fourfold higher on wildflower than crop fields. On wildflower fields, insect abundances increased with wildflower cover, while moth abundances increased with shares of semi-natural habitats. Bat activity on wildflower compared to crop fields was higher during the beginning and lower towards the end of summer. Both bat and foraging activity increased with insect abundance and decreased with patch size of wildflower fields. Wildflower fields seem to be a promising tool to provide adequate foraging habitats for insectivorous bats in agro-ecosystems but sufficient prey availability may be key, particularly during times of high food demand. Moreover, it seems vital to target complex landscapes and foster the retention and reintroduction of hedgerows in agro-ecosystems.

Conservation genetics is important in the management of endangered species, helping to understand their connectivity and long-term viability, thus identifying populations of importance for conservation. The pond bat (Myotis dasycneme) is a rare species classified as “Near Threatened” with a wide but patchy Palearctic distribution. A total of 277 samples representing populations in Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Hungary, and Russia were used in the genetic analyses; 224 samples representing Denmark, Germany, and Russia were analyzed at 10 microsatellite loci; 241 samples representing all areas were analyzed using mitochondrial D-loop and cytochrome B sequences. A Bayesian clustering approach revealed two poorly resolved clusters, one representing the Danish and German groups and the other the Russian group. However, significantly different pairwise F ST and D EST estimates were observed between the Danish and German groups and between the Danish and Russian groups suggesting a recent population structure. These conflicting results might be attributed to the effect of migration or low resolution due to the number of microsatellite markers used. After concatenating the two mitochondrial sequences, analysis detected significant genetic differentiation between all populations, probably due to genetic drift combined with a founder event. The phylogenetic tree suggested a closer relationship between the Russian and Northern European populations compared to the Hungarian population, implying that the latter belongs to an older ancestral population. This was supported by the observed haplotype network and higher nucleotide diversity in this population. The genetic structuring observed in the Danish/German pond bat stresses the need for a cross-border management between the two countries. Further, the pronounced mtDNA structuring, together with the indicated migration between nearby populations suggest philopatric female behavior but male migration, emphasizes the importance of protecting suitable habitat mosaics to maintain a continuum of patches with dense pond bat populations across the species' distribution range.

Conservation genetics is important in the management of endangered species, helping to understand their connectivity and long‐term viability, thus identifying populations of importance for conservation. The pond bat (Myotis dasycneme) is a rare species classified as “Near Threatened” with a wide but patchy Palearctic distribution. A total of 277 samples representing populations in Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Hungary, and Russia were used in the genetic analyses; 224 samples representing Denmark, Germany, and Russia were analyzed at 10 microsatellite loci; 241 samples representing all areas were analyzed using mitochondrial D‐loop and cytochrome B sequences. A Bayesian clustering approach revealed two poorly resolved clusters, one representing the Danish and German groups and the other the Russian group. However, significantly different pairwise F ST and D EST estimates were observed between the Danish and German groups and between the Danish and Russian groups suggesting a recent population structure. These conflicting results might be attributed to the effect of migration or low resolution due to the number of microsatellite markers used. After concatenating the two mitochondrial sequences, analysis detected significant genetic differentiation between all populations, probably due to genetic drift combined with a founder event. The phylogenetic tree suggested a closer relationship between the Russian and Northern European populations compared to the Hungarian population, implying that the latter belongs to an older ancestral population. This was supported by the observed haplotype network and higher nucleotide diversity in this population. The genetic structuring observed in the Danish/German pond bat stresses the need for a cross‐border management between the two countries. Further, the pronounced mtDNA structuring, together with the indicated migration between nearby populations suggest philopatric female behavior but male migration, emphasizes the importance of protecting suitable habitat mosaics to maintain a continuum of patches with dense pond bat populations across the species' distribution range.

Roads are a threat to biological diversity. Especially the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) can be badly influenced by fragmentation due to its strictly arboreal activity. In this study a Northern German dormouse population living in roadside habitats and on road islands at crossroads was investigated to find out if road crossing is an exceptional behaviour or if it happens regularly. With capture-mark-recapture-method 30 crossings (mostly across a federal highway, three of them across a federal motorway) and via telemetry 27 crossings over federal highway and smaller streets were observed. Our study gives evidence, that road crossing can be a relatively frequent behaviour, as 18 % of the mark-recaptured and 60 % of the radio marked animals crossed roads, but it remains unclear, under which circumstances road crossing takes place.

Many European migratory bat species hibernate in large hollow trees, a decreasing resource in present day silviculture. Here, we report on the importance of man-made hibernacula to support trans-boundary populations of noctule bats (Nyctalus noctula), a species that performs seasonal long distance movements throughout Europe. In winter, we surveyed nine bat roosts (eight artificial and one natural) in Germany and collected small tufts of fur from a total of 608 individuals. We then measured the stable isotope ratios of the non-exchangeable hydrogen in fur keratin and estimated the origin of migrants using a refined isoscape origin model that included information on expected flight distances and migration directions. According to the stable isotope signature, 78 % of hibernating bats originated from local populations. The remaining 22 % of hibernacula occupants originated from distant populations, mostly from places in northern or eastern countries such as Sweden, Poland and Baltic countries. Our results confirm that many noctule bats cross one or several political borders during migration. Data on the breeding origin of hibernating noctule bats also suggest that artificial roosts may not only be important for local but also for distant populations. Protection of natural and artificial hibernacula in managed forests may support the trans-boundary populations of migratory bats when hollow trees are scarce in managed forests.

The virus is probably maintained on the population level by amplification and transmission in maternity colonies., We tested 315 bats from 7 different bat species in northern Germany for coronaviruses by reverse transcription–PCR. The overall prevalence was 9.8%. There were 4 lineages of group I coronaviruses in association with 4 different species of verspertilionid bats (Myotis dasycneme, M. daubentonii, Pipistrellus nathusii, P. pygmaeus). The lineages formed a monophyletic clade of bat coronaviruses found in northern Germany. The clade of bat coronaviruses have a sister relationship with a clade of Chinese type I coronaviruses that were also associated with the Myotis genus (M. ricketti). Young age and ongoing lactation, but not sex or existing gravidity, correlated significantly with coronavirus detection. The virus is probably maintained on the population level by amplification and transmission in maternity colonies, rather than being maintained in individual bats.